Dragoons and Family Enjoy Nathan Bedford Forrest Birthday Party at Fort Dixie

Six compatriots of Sons of Confederate Veterans Camp 1524 attended the 20th annual observance of the 198th Birthday Celebration of Lt. Gen. N.B. Forrest at Butch and Pat Godwin's Fort Dixie on Saturday July 27th.  Commander Waldo, 1st Lt. Grooms, Color Sgt Dennis as well as Tyrone Crowley, George Jenks and his wife and, Dave Thompson and his fiancee attended this event which had a huge turnout of hundreds with the perfect weather.  Canopies provided some shade for the spectators and water and lemonade as well as ice cold watermelon was available to keep cool.  Everything kicked off at 3pm with a welcome from the hosts followed by an Invocation by Dr. Cecil Williamson and an acknowledgement of those who have crossed over in the past year (including Bill Anthony who always led the auction at this event as well as Bill Gill, a member of the Dragoons).  A cannon salute followed, manned by Clanton's Artillery out of Luverne.  SCV Commander in Chief Paul Gramling brought greetings after his introduction by Ronnie Simmons who also introduced the period band Dixie Jubilee out of Woodstock GA.  The Rev. John Westerfield was the keynote speaker and he discussed the founding principles of our country as a confederation of states and how our ancestors sought to preserve that ideal.  After another cannon salute, the auction commenced with spirited bidding on Confederate memorabilia as Ed Boardwine and Mike Whorton encouraged those to raise the bids on the framed prints, reproduction storage containers, quilts and other items with proceeds to benefit Confederate Memorial Circle in Old Live Oak Cemetery in Selma.  After the blessing of the food and a rendition of Dixie on the harp by the band, everyone filed thru the line to enjoy the delicious catfish supper which included hush puppies, cole slaw, corn on the cob, potatoes, sliced tomatoes as well as homemade desserts like banana pudding, peach cobbler, cakes and apple turnovers.  Commander Waldo's children decided after that treat that they certainly liked fried catfish just so it was battered, seasoned and fried like that at Forrest's birthday party supper.  To wrap up the evening, the winners of the silent auction as well as the Forrest bronze bust were announced, Forrest's birthday cake was cake and Dixie Jubilee performed a concert wrapping up with "Dixie" and a final cannon salute. Another very enjoyable birthday party event by the Godwins with friends and family. 

Prattville Dragoons' Camp Meeting for July 2019 - The Attacks on Our Monuments

The Dragoons' SCV Camp 1524 meeting for July was held on Thursday evening the 11th at the Masonic Lodge in downtown Prattville.  1st Lt Harold Grooms led the meeting as the commander was late returning from out of town.  Former Chaplain Tom Snowden opened the meeting with an Invocation followed by the Salutes to the flags led by Color Sgt John Dennis.  1st Lt Grooms recited the SCV Charge to those assembled and then provided the announcements and upcoming events including the Forrest Birthday party at Ft.Dixie scheduled for Saturday July 27th.  Col. John Eidsmoe was introduced as the guest speaker for the meeting and he discussed the attacks on our historical monuments.  Col. Eidsmoe is the Senior Counsel and Resident Scholar for the Foundation for Moral Law in Montgomery.  He is an attorney and professor of constitutional law having taught at Faulkner University and Oral Roberts University.  Col. Eidsmoe served in the US Air Force and the Alabama State Defense Force. 

Col. Eidsmoe opened with the assertion that when discussing the dynamics of the War of Northern Aggression, one could similarly be talking about the Vietnam War or Korean War.  In the Korean War, propaganda was used against U.S. forces but they found that those soldiers who were either Christian or history scholars were difficult to brainwash.  If the populace does not know their history and heritage, the government and those seeking power can create a vision of what they want the society to look like by creating a distorted foundation of ideals and morality and the governing laws those entail. 

How far will the attacks go against the historical monuments in our country?  Will they seek to tear down the obelisk monument to Sgt. Floyd who was the only member of the Lewis and Clark expedition to die as their exploration was commissioned by the slave owner President Thomas Jefferson and the Louisiana Purchase resulted in the exploitation of the native Indians.  But what about tearing down monuments to liberal icons?

The Christian cross used in monuments has been under attack but, while it is a Christian symbol of the crucifixion of Christ, it also has unique historical associations.  It is used in the U.S. military's second highest honor (behind the Medal of Honor) and is used in military cemeteries as a symbol of sacrifice. The American Humanist Association brought a case for the removal of these crosses and the American Legion supported by the Foundation for Moral Law fought this action and won with a 7-2 decision by the Supreme Court supporting the cross. 

The 2017 Alabama Monument Preservation Act was created specifying that no monument between 20 and 40 years old may be removed without the state historical commission approval and that any monument older than 40 years old can be removed at all.  Of course this law has come under challenge with a monument in a Birmingham park being obstructed by a plywood structure erected by the mayor's office.  The Alabama Attorney General has brought suit against the mayor but one Alabama judge issued an opinion that the law is unconstitutional even going so far as to say the monument represented the Confederate attempts to preserve slavery; so it wasn't a judicial opinion but an editorial opinion.  It is not the place of a judge to try to determine the cause of the War Between the States which had many causes including the issue of oppressive tariffs, preservation of the Union, a religious struggle of Calvinism versus Unitarianism and many other reasons.  The judge erroneously stated that the municipality had a right to freedom of speech (which is an individual's right per the constitution guarantees). 

Most of the Confederate monuments were erected in the late 1800s and early 1900s when Confederate veterans were dying and it was viewed as an appropriate time to commemorate their sacrifices.  Additionally the South was becoming more prosperous and so communities and individuals could afford the cost of these monuments.  In the 1960s, additional monuments were erected to observe the centennial of the WBTS not as racist symbols opposing Civil Rights.

Monuments are erected to recognize institutions, sacrifices, ideals and ideas, civic leaders and their actions.  Monuments promote tourism.  Monuments serve as an impetus for citizens to serve their country in the military or civic offices, to be recognized and honored for their service. They help historians in the study of human nature and past achievements.  Monuments are often voices of dissent (and perhaps should be listened to today).  Maybe it is a moral imperative to honor our past thru monuments. 

If they can rewrite history and create a myth of evil in the past and of our ancestors, they can attempt to erase that our country was founded on Christian principles and they can make the country atheist in the future.  He who controls the past controls the future and he who controls the present contriols the past.  Children are being taught to despise their heritage (as racist) in public schools.  Look at Germany which gave civilization the Reformation and the music of Bach but the National Socialists of Hitler brainwashed the citizenry and turned them from Christianity. 

A heritage is a wonderful thing but not to rest on but to build on.  Col. Eidsmoe expressed that he supports the Confederacy because Davis and Calhoun knew the Constitution far better than Lincoln and Webster.  He supports the military who are sworn to defend the Constitution against enemies foreign and domestic.  Unfortunately, the liberals view is that the Constitution is meant to be changed as a "living document" instead of as a firm unyielding foundation for our country in the past, present and future. 

Prattville Dragoons Compatriot Attends 2019 Sons of Confederate Veterans National Reunion in Mobile AL

Dragoon Tyrone Crowley attended the SCV National Reunion which was held Thursday through Saturday, 11-13 July, in Mobile, Alabama.  The Reunion was hosted by the Raphael Semmes Camp #11.  This was the 124th SCV Reunion and was held at the Mobile Convention Center at 1 South Water Street in Mobile.  Reunion attendees stayed at the Renaissance Riverview Plaza Hotel, across Water Street from the Convention Center.

Others from the Montgomery local area and Alabama Division attending included Henry C. Semple Camp Commander John Land, Butch and Pat Godwin from Selma, Past Alabama Division Commanders Gary Carlyle and Jimmy Hill, and current Division Commander Carl Jones.   Alabama members all sat together in one section of the auditorium.

News of interest to Alabama Division compatriots learned at the 2019 Reunion included 1) that the Alabama Division Education Conference scheduled for Saturday 3 August has been cancelled due to low registration numbers and 2) that Dr. Charles Estell Baker, revered Past National And Division Chaplain, is now in a nursing home in Missouri.

On Friday, Tyrone accepted, on behalf of the Prattville Dragoons, a certificate of appreciation and a blue ribbon awarded as a result of the donation recently made by the Dragoons to The Confederate Legion.  The certificate was signed by Donnie and Ronnie Kennedy, twin brothers from Louisiana who published the popular book, The South Was Right! back in 1994 and have written several others since, in defense of Southern Heritage.  Walter Donald "Donnie" Kennedy is also National SCV Chief of Heritage Operations and was a speaker at the Reunion.  Tyrone made a picture with the Kennedy twins, holding the certificate of appreciation presented to the Dragoons.

All staff at the Reunion Center and the Renaissance Hotel, were courteous, friendly, and went "above and beyond" when assistance was requested for any reason.  On two different occasions, Tyrone asked directions of staff and both times the staff member stopped what he was doing and walked with them to point out the direction in which they needed to go to get to a particular table or location.  SCV logos and Battle Flags were present everywhere, including a 20' x 30' Battle Flag hanging over the speakers' podium.  

The Reunion began on Wednesday July 10th with registration and a shrimp boil hosted by the Raphael Semmes Camp at the Battleship Alabama park on Mobile Bay.  On Thursday the SCV Prayer Breakfast at 6:30am started the day followed by the Opening Ceremony at the Convention Center.  During the morning business meetings, a tour was offered of the Mobile Mardi Gras Museum.  The SCV Heritage Luncheon was at noon on Thursday where the Kennedy brothers appealed for support for the SCV "Make Dixie Great Again" Confederate Legion campaign.  A tour of the Fort McDermott Blakeley Battlefield was conducted in the afternoon.  

On Friday another business session was held in the morning with an Awards Luncheon at noon.  In the afternoon, a bus tour to Beauvoir in Biloxi was offered.  A Memorial Service to fallen compatriots was held at the Cathedral of Immaculate Conception there in downtown Mobile and the day's activities concluded with a Oratorical Contest that evening hosted by past CiC Chuck McMichael.  

Saturday the final business session and Army meetings were held in the morning and in the afternoon, dance lessons were offered followed by the Commander's Reception, the Banquet and Grand Ball that evening.  

  

Prattville Dragoons Commander's Column for July 2019 - Independence Day

The Dragoons once again participated in the city of Prattville’s Independence Day parade.  It was a very enjoyable way to kick off the holiday festivities throwing candy to the thousands of specators lining Main Street in downtown Prattville.  Over five hundred mini-Battle flags were handed out too with both young and old running after the camp compatriots in the parade to grab a flag.  One lady who approached me and took a Confederate flag asked if I had a “real American flag” also.  I told her that was a real American flag.  She chuckled and said, “No, a real Amercian flag.” So I reitereated that it was most certainly a real American flag, that used by the armies of the Confederate States of America.  When I first joined the SCV I was corrected on this very thing. It is important to remember that many of the leaders of the Confederacy were leaders before in the United States Army and government.  A related bit of trivia is the question as to what American Presidents attedned West Point.  Some who are students of American history may correctly guess Eisenhower and Grant but unless you are a student of the period leading up to and including the War Between the States, you may fail to include Jefferson Davis in that group; certainly another American President.  Some of the greatest Americans were also Confederates, men like Lee, Jackson, Cleburne, Semems, Benjamin and, Davis.    

The Dragoons have participated in the Prattville parade on the 4^th of July for many years now and it has sometimes struck me as a conflict for us as representing the Sons of Confederate Veterans to participate in the celebration of that day which was a disastrous turning point in our ancestors fight for sovereignty and liberty with the battle at Gettysburg and the surrender of Vicksburg on July 4^th, 1863.  I had camp members in the past make the point that instead of referring to the parade as the 4^th of July parade, we should refer to it as the Independence Day parade as we should celebrate our founding fathers successful fight for independence from the oppression of British rule as colonists but also honor our Confederate ancestors fight for independence as they struggled to preserve the founding ideals of state soverignty and individual liberty. The Confederate Constitution was very similar to and replicated that of the United States while strengthening the position of state sovereignty and curtailing the reach of the federal government especially in regards to commerce and tariffs. 

We have many members who have served their country in the Armed Forces, patriots who sacrificed of themselves for the defense of their homes and family, for America but, who are also learned of the true history of the South and the service of their Confederate ancestors.  There should be no quandry as to whether we as SCV members bleed red, white and blue but, we can equally respect the constitutional secession of our state in 1861 and honor the heroic struggle our forebears endured to protect their homes, families, state, culture and way of life.  Their’s was truly a valiant War for Southern Independence which we can commemorate simultaneously.

Upcoming Events for Confederate Compatriots

National Reunion – Mobile Convention Ctr, July 10-13^th

Godwin’s Forrest Birthday Party – at Ft. Dixie, 10800 Co.Rd. 30, Selma, Saturday July 27^th from 3pm til

Division Education Conference – Saturday, August 3^rd at Grace Point Church, Montgomery AL

Dragoons Fundraiser Dixie Butt Fundraiser – August 10^th 8-10am, Herrod’s Chevron, Memorial Dr. Prattville AL

Prattville Dragoons Chaplain's Column for July 2019 - Great Sacrifices

"I am well aware of the toil and blood and treasure it will cost us to maintain this declaration, and support and defend these states. Yet through all the gloom I see the rays of ravishing light and glory. I can see that the end is worth all the means. This is our day of deliverance."   John Adams (1735–1826)

Some 243 years ago our founders were willing to give their lives to see the United States Of America become more than a dream.

A little over 150 years ago, our ancestors were tired of an over reaching federal government and decided to stand and fight for our freedoms once again. Today, we see a faction of our country that is not only going after our heritage but our country’s origins and the flag that was first sown for our country.

Our ancestors sacrificed their lives for the birth of our nation and then for the Confederate States.

Christ paid the ultimate sacrifice 2,000 years ago so that we might have eternal life in Heaven. Great things in life come with sacrifice. Christ sacrificed His life for the World. May we stand for Christ and country and not be ashamed of our Lord nor ashamed of our country.

Please keep all camp members in your prayers!

God Bless

Sons of Confederate Veterans Camp 1524 Participate in Prattville Independence Day Parade

The Dragoons participated in the annual Prattville Independence Day parade this morning to kick off the 4th of July holiday with friends and family and neighbors.  The camp's entry included an SCV banner which was carried in front by Commander Waldo and Adjutant Sutherland, Commander Waldo's Dodge Charger adorned with the U.S. and Confederate Battle flags, compatriot Beir Butler's golf cart decorated with red, white and blue bunting along with the U.S., Alabama state and Confederate First National flags, three members of the Alabama Division Mechanized Cavalry on their Harley Davidson motorcycles (Michael Adkins, Brian Anderson and former Dragoon Don Owens), along with a number of men walking alongside.  Commander Waldo's wife Kerri and children enjoyed the respite from the early morning heat and humidity by blasting the air conditioner in the Charger as they drove it down the parade route, throwing all their candy to the parade spectators.  Candy and mini-Battle flags were handed out by all the walkers who included Quartermaster Bill Myrick, compatriot Larry Spears, Color Sgt John Dennis and his grandson Shawn.  Compatriot Tyrone Crowley rode in the cart with Beir.  The Dragoons were warmly received all along the parade route with spectators standing and clapping and thanking the camp for their participation and community service.  Over five hundred mini-Battle flags were handed out to folks along the parade route as it wound down Court Street, Main Street and Northington as people clamored for the beloved symbol of the Confederate fight for independence and the preservation of state sovereignty, liberty and founding ideals.  It was an enjoyable day with compatriots, friends, family and our Prattville neighbors.